John E. Vohlers Movies
Stand-up comic Carrot Top is usually seen with his wacky inventions, such as a bald-head blowdryer and an anatomically correct fanny pack. Similar goofy gimmicks are combined with physical humor and stunt work in this comedy about the plight of Venice Beach inventor-surfer Edison (Carrot Top) and his roommates Ty (Mystro Clark) and Zak (Jack Plotnick) as they all near eviction. For rent money, Edison tries (unsuccessfully) to sell his dopey devices, including his Glo Gunk and his bug-killer helmet. A la Melvin and Howard, Edison offers a roadside assist to wealthy tycoon Armand McMillan (Jack Warden), who dies and wills controlling shares of his business to Edison, putting Edison at odds with McMillan's mean-spirited nephew (Larry Miller) and McMillan's closest corporate competitor Grace Kosik (Raquel Welch). In the Big tradition, Edison gets positive reactions to such inventions as TV dinners with real TVs and his Bull Shirt lie-detector -- while schemes and intrigue lurk around every corner of the corporate corridors. The comedian received a satirical jab from Mike Myers in Austin Powers: International Man of Mystery (1997) when the words "Carrot Top movie" are seen on a document of villainous "evil schemes." ~ Bhob Stewart, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Carrot Top, Courtney Thorne-Smith, (more)
- 1997
- R
Mario Van Peebles wrote, produced, and starred in this follow-up to his 1993 Western Posse. Chance (Van Peebles) is a cavalry scout in the old west who accidentally gives his battalion wrong directions going into a battle. Not being a forgiving bunch, the soldiers beat Chance, tar and feather him, and leave him to die in the desert. However, Chance is found by Buck (Paul Lazar), who asks him if he's the young god Icarus, who fell to Earth after flying too close to the sun. It seems that Buck is an inmate at an insane asylum that's part of a nearby convent; Chance is brought back to the convent, where the nuns nurse him back to health. Chance learns that the Mother Superior (Jean Speegle Howard) is in poor health, and she asks Chance to lead the nuns and their charges to a safer mission 100 miles across the arid plains. Mother Superior dies only a few hours later, and the cruel Sister Drexel (Rusty Schwimmer) takes charge of the flock. Not eager to take her abuse, Chance goes his own way, but when he encounters the disturbed men of the convent, led by the self-proclaimed President (Rene Auberjonois), he realizes that he must help them if they are to survive. Los Locos was also distributed as Los Locos: Posse Rides Again, though while both are set in the old West and star Mario Van Peebles, he does not play the same character and the two films have no narrative connection. ~ Mark Deming, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Mario Van Peebles, Melora Walters, (more)
Comic Rodney Dangerfield co-wrote and stars in this outrageous comedy. Wally Sparks (Dangerfield) is the host of a sleazy tabloid-style talk show who makes Jerry Springer seem genteel by comparison. Wally's show has become so foul that he's alienated his not-especially-discriminating viewers, and his ratings are taking a nosedive. Lenny Spencer (Burt Reynolds), head of the network carrying Wally's show, gives the host an ultimatum -- he has a week to clean up the show and boost his ratings, or his show gets cancelled. Wally's producer Sandy Gallo (Debi Mazar) comes up with an idea -- Floyd Preston (David Ogden Stiers) is the governor of Georgia and a staunch conservative known for his attacks on the lowbrow content of Wally's show, so what better way to show people that Wally is trying to change his ways than having Preston on the show as a guest? In order to persuade the Governor to appear, Wally attends a reception at Preston's mansion, where he makes the mistake of getting in a drunken game of strip poker with Preston's wife Emily (Cindy Williams) and somehow involving himself in a plot to blackmail the Governor. Meet Wally Sparks is packed with cameos in which noted show business figures play themselves, ranging from Tim Allen, Jay Leno, and Bob Saget to Michael Bolton, Ron Jeremy, and Jerry Springer himself. ~ Mark Deming, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Rodney Dangerfield, Debi Mazar, (more)
- 1995
- R
This psychological thriller was cowritten by Steven Pressfield, who went on to become a successful novelist with The Legend of Bagger Vance (2000) and historical fiction such as Gates of Fire and Tides of War. Linda Hamilton stars as Lauren Porter, a well-regarded professor of psychology who fears that she may be suffering from multiple personality disorder. As a young girl, she received psychological scars when her mother murdered her stepfather and then committed suicide. She approaches one of her students, Tom Beckwith (James Belushi), a former cop who has quit the force in order to study psychology, and tells him of her concerns. Although he is struggling with his own relationship with his daughter, Beckwith agrees to trail Porter, and before long she has indeed slipped into a totally different personality, that of Lena, a club-hopping swinger. When Lena gets into trouble with a man she's picked up, Beckwith intervenes and receives a brutal beating. Soon, the murder of an investigator and the death of Porter's ex-husband are laid at her feet. ~ Karl Williams, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- James Belushi, Linda Hamilton, (more)
- 1995
- R
Based on a true story, this psychological study concerns Henry Lesser (Robert Sean Leonard), a prison guard who witnesses the brutal beating of an inmate, Carl Panzram (James Woods), who attempted to escape. Lesser tries to befriend the convict, whom he senses has an intelligence that has gone unrecognized by his jailers; he gives Panzram a notebook and pencils and encourages him to keep a journal. Panzram responds by writing the story of his life of crime -- a shocking litany of violence and brutality in which he takes credit for 21 murders, numerous armed robberies, several acts of arson, and over 1,000 homosexual rapes. Lesser has a difficult time reconciling the intelligent, articulate man he sees in his cell every day with the monster documented in his writings (though as far as anyone can tell, his claims are entirely accurate). Lesser believes that there's a humanity in Panzram that can be brought out, and that he can be redeemed and perhaps rehabilitated. Panzram, however, doesn't seem so convinced; his violent behavior continues behind bars, and attempts by opponents of the death penalty to prevent his execution only inspire his scorn -- as he sees it, society made him a killer, and it's society's responsibility to stop him once and for all. Killer: A Journal of Murder was the first directorial project for screenwriter Tim Metcalfe. ~ Mark Deming, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- James Woods, Robert Sean Leonard, (more)
An American ex-con gets caught up in a Parisian bank heist that goes wrong in this ultra-violent thriller. Zed (Eric Stoltz), a safe-cracking expert fresh out of prison, travels to France to participate in a robbery planned by his friend Eric (Jean-Hughes Anglade). But first, Zed decides to indulge in some relaxation with a gorgeous, kind-hearted prostitute by the name of Zoe (Julie Delpy). This idyll, however, is interrupted by Eric, who leads Zed and the other criminals on a long night of drinking, drugging, and debauchery. The next day, the thieves find themselves hung over and exhausted, and the plan soon goes disastrously wrong, turning into a hostage situation. Even worse for Zed, he discovers that the lovely Zoe also works as a teller at the bank, forcing him into a tricky moral dilemma. Writer and director Roger Avary, best known as the co-screenwriter of Pulp Fiction, creates a similar combination of black comedy, extreme violence, and hip attitude. Critics of Quentin Tarantino's films raised similar objections to Avary's reliance on bloody violence and a detached sensibility, while the film's fans acclaimed its fast-paced action. ~ Judd Blaise, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Eric Stoltz, Julie Delpy, (more)
Embracing the supposed nihilism and cynicism of the "slacker" generation, S.F.W. (1995) caused nary a blip on the media-saturated cultural radar screen that it criticized. Stephen Dorff stars as Cliff Spab, an aimless, hard-drinking youth. Spab becomes a national hero when he is one of several people held hostage by gun-toting terrorists in a convenience store. He doesn't care much about his own life or anything else, and his attitude of "So f---ing what?" translates into debates with his terrorist captors and gloomy pronouncements that charm viewers. After a month-long siege, a crisis erupts when the store runs out of beer and junk food, so Cliff finds himself a free man whose celebrity image is emblazoned on t-shirts and whose presence is requested at a rock concert where he is required to do nothing other than appear. In the meantime, Spab's girlfriend Wendy (Reese Witherspoon) becomes a ubiquitous talk show guest. Ostensibly a satire of the celebrity-obsessed culture of the 1990s, the film was withheld from distribution for a year because of thematic similarities to Oliver Stone's Natural Born Killers (1994). ~ Karl Williams, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Stephen Dorff, Reese Witherspoon, (more)
- 1994
It's the old switcheroo in this action comedy that follows the exploits of desperate extortionists. Gloria is a fluffhead with a Chinese dragon tattooed upon her chest. She wears lovely holograph earrings that just happen to contain classified detail of the U.S. space program. She is taken hostage by the bumbling extortionists and their leader Carl, former head of a freezer treat company. Unfortunately for them, Gloria accidently drowns in their pool when she tangles with a beach ball. Now the crooks must find a look-a-like for Gloria. They find her in Teresa, a college girl with a talent for mathematics. She is captured and tattooed. She soon escapes leading the crooks on a merry chase. Joining in the hunt for Teresa is an FBI agent and her new boyfriend. ~ Sandra Brennan, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Adrienne Shelly, C. Thomas Howell, (more)
An emotionally distraught cop is traumatized by memories of an abusive childhood in which he was forced to kill the uncle who was abusing him. Fired by his corrupt boss, he is recruited to infiltrate a ring of murderous, gun-running bikers, who would kill him in a second if they found out who he was -- which his friends begin to suspect was why he took the job in the first place. ~ Brian Gusse, All Movie Guide
- Starring:
- Charlie Sheen, Linda Fiorentino, (more)
